Maltese knees up

THE Maltese might have thought they had seen the last of invading powers - well, that was until MTV turned up.
Luckily this was an invasion of a different kind.
I had flown to Malta along with 50,000 music fans for the Isle of MTV Music Week at the start of the summer.
The already bustling tourist destination looked as if it was under siege as a small army of pop fans poured on to the island from across the world to take part in a musical extravaganza.
As the main gig kicked off I found myself at the front of the stage sipping on a glass of the local Cisk lager.
But in the distance, over the heads of thousands of screaming music fans, I could see the exquisitely beautiful St Publius Church in Fosos Square lit up against the night sky. It was no wonder all those invading powers - such as the Phoenicians and Romans - felt so at home once they set foot on the strategicallyplaced Mediterranean island. Malta was a British colony between 1800 and 1964 and endured a traumatic six-week period in the early part of the Second World War when an astonishing 6,700 tons of enemy bombs fell.
Since independence it has forged a reputation for attracting British pensioners interested in its historical delights.
But in recent years Malta has been pulling in a new generation of visitors.
Hence the arrival of swathes of young music fans, myself included, looking to pay homage to the stars.
Bopping along with the crowd to US rapper will.i.am's This Is Love, the vibe was like a night at a big Ibiza club. Earlier in the evening an A-list line-up including Nelly Furtado, Flo Rida and Eva Simons had performed to a capacity crowd.
And, not to be outdone by the stars, a selection of DJs played a series of gigs at local venues including La Grotta, famed for being one of the most beautiful open-air clubs in the Med, and Club Numero Uno.